Rotatable display equipment



NOV. JONES ET AL ROTATABLE DISPLAY EQUIPMENT Filed July 11, 1951 2Sheets-Sheet 1 Z (7 HLIJb716S Rx/0710s Nov. 21, 1933.

H. L. JONES ET AL 1,936,132

ROTATABLE DI SPLAY EQUIPMENT Filed July 11 1951 2 Sheets-$heet 2 I/LZ 1by [2 L, Jones @Rx/ones Patented Nov. 21,1933

Uitll STATE 1,936,132 j t 'ROTATAB LE DISPLAY EQUIPMENT Hal 'L. Jonesand Charles Ray Jones, Joplin, Mo.

Application July 11, 1931. Serial No. 550,184

, 18 Claims. ((21. 211-74) This invention relates to devices fordisplaying goods in retail stores and particularly to The presentinvention is designed to provide means whereby a transparent jarcontaining the same goods as are contained within the cans maybedisposed in juxta-position to the cans of goods so that the customer maysee just exactly what is being bought. 1 v

4 A further object in this connection is to provide means whereby thetransparent jar containing the sample of the goods may be readilyrotated so that the customer can secure a good view of the contents. I

A still further object is to provide a display device which isattachable to a shelf and which will hold the transparent jar inimmediate conjunction with the canned goods of whichthe jar is aspecimen, and a further object in this connection is to make it possiblefor accurately set-- Figure 1 is a top plan view of our attachment andthree adjacent cans arranged upon a shelf;

Figure 2 isan elevation of two tiers of cans and the transparentspecimen jar;-

Figure 3 is a side elevation partly in section of the cans and jar asshown in Figure 2; Figure 4 is an under side plan view of the upper jarsupporting plate.

shelf upon which the goods are to be displayed and B an upper shelf, Cdesignating a plurality of cans filled with canned goods such aspeaches; tomatoes or the like. Our attachment comprises a base plate 11having an upwardly extending rim or flange 12 supporting a dummy can 13.This dummy can may have advertising" matter thereon or may have the sameornamentation and descriptive matter as is placed upon the can 0. Thebase plate 11- is circular in form and is laterally extended-as at 14,this extension 14 being in the form of an'approximate square, the squarehaving concavely curved sideedges 14a; so asto I fit within a spacedefined by three cansas illus- -g trated in Figure 1, these three cansbeing arranged in symmetrical relation so as to present an attractive,orderly appearanceon the shelves. The dummy can 13 is preferablyattached to the supporting plate 11 and also extending upward from thissupporting plate is a tubular stem or standard 15. a I LY Adapted to bedisposed on the upper end-of the dummy can l3 is aplate 16 havingthesame shapev as the plate 11 but having a downwardly extending annularflange 17 which fits closely withinthe dummy can 13. The dum ny can l3is vertically slotted at 18 and carried upon the downwardly projectinglugs 19 formed on the under sideoI" the plate 16 is an operating shaft20 whose outer end extends out through the slot 18 7 and carries aknurled headZl} The inner end of this shaft carries the beveled gearwheel .22 Extendingupward through the center of: the plate 16"is avertical shaft 23 carrying at its lower end the beveled gear-wheel 241The upper end of: this shaft carries upon itthe disk 25' havinganupwardly extending annular flange 26 and upwardlyt extending fingers 2?;these fingers being adapted to: embrace and receive the lower end of atransparent jar 28' 'containin'g a sample of I the goods as disposediinthe can C. I This jar is; of course, to'be sealed and to be in allrespects a fair sample of'the good'sas contained within the cans C. Theplate 25 with the flange 26 and fingers 2'7 constitutes a holder for thejar.

, It'will be seen-that'with this construction, when the knurled head 21is turned, the jar holder and the jar will be'rotated so that'thecontents of the jar can beseen by the customer; A- washer 29' isdisposed between the bottom ofthe holder 25 and the upper face of theplate 16 so as to permit a free rotation of the holder'and a washer or'equivalent member 30 surrounding the shaft 23' V i below *he late 16 soas to liold'the ear wheelI24 Referring to these drawings, A designates ap g in engagement with the gear wheel 22. v The plate 16 is alsooutwardly extended at 31,

this outward extension being approximately squarewith reentrant orconcavely curved edges of] exactly the same typeas'the" extension 14' soas to fit in the space between three symmetrically disposed cans asshown in Figure 1. The tubular stein-or standard 15 extendsupw'ardfthrough the extension 31 and engaged in this standard is the screw 32,the upper end of which is tapered to a four-sided point at 33. Engagingthe screwthreads of this screw 32 is a nut 34 which bears against theupper end of the tubular stem 15. It will thus be obvious that as thenut is rotated in one direction, the screw 32 will be forced upward andits point will be forced into the upper shelf B as shown clearly inFigure 3, thus locking the attachment in place against accidentaldislodgement. Preferably the upper end of the screw just below the point33 is knurled at 35 to permit the holding of the screw by the fingerswhile the equipment is being screwed in position by the tightening ofthe adjusting nut 34. Thus adjustment of the rod and nut permits theequipment to be quickly and securely setup or as quickly removed,without the use of any tools, tacks, nails or screws. Furthermore, thispermits the equipment to be adjusted to various heights between shelves.

It is to be noted that the dummy can 13 and the plates 16 are bothprovided with protruding rims which immediately contact with the cans Cand cause a space to be formed between the body of the jar 28 and thesurfaces of the cans C to thus permit free rotation of the jar.

While We have heretofore referred to the use of this transparent jar 28and the means for supporting and rotating it in connection with cannetgoods or tinned goods, obviously we do'not wish to be limited to this asthe device might be used in connection with goods put up in glass, thedevice under these circumstances permitting the customer to rotate thetransparent jar supported F spection.

Preferably, as before stated, the dummy can 13 which constitutes asupport for the transparent jar will be labeled and will have theappearance of the remainder of the cans, though obviously we do not wishto be limited to this.

It will be noted that we have made use of the space between the cans ofgoods created by the common practice of stacking cans in front of each aother, to the side of each other and on top of each other on theshelves. The extensions 14 and 31 cross this otherwise useless space sothat the shelf engaging means is practically entirely concealed withinthis space and the cans on the shelves, together'with the supportingbase 13 or dummycan and transparent jar 23 may seem as a harmoniouswhole.

While we have illustrated the jar 28 as being rotatable by means of vthe knurled head 21, we do not-wish to be limited to this as the jarmight be rotated intermittently by a spring motor, electric motor orother power. By our device, we are enabled to adjust the equipment todifferent spaced shelves and securely hold the display device in placeso that it cannot be accidently knocked off the shelf in removingadjacent cans.

As illustrated in the drawings, our display device permits the cans orother containers to be disposed in parallel rows upon the shelves, the

rows being parallel to the front edge of the shelf ment of the cans onthe top row and also acts as a guard to cans on the lower row.

While we have before referred to the use of this equipment in connectionwith cans, it is to be understood that by the term cans we include anyform of jar or container to which our equipment is adapted, whetherthese jars are transparent or whether they are closed cans. Thisequipment while particularly adapted to be used on shelves of retailstores, could be used very effectively on the shelves of sales rooms ofwholesale houses to show to the prospective buyer the contents of thecanned goods which he is interested in purchasing; This does away withthe cutting open of canned goods for inspection and this does away withwaste.

While we believe the details of construction to be particularlyeffective, we do not wish to be limited to these details, except asdefined in the appended claims.

We claim:-

1. A display device of the character described, including a cylindricalsupport, means for clamp ing the support to a shelf, a cap insertibleinto the upper end of the support, a jar holder rotatably mounted uponthe cap and having meansfor engaging the lower end of a transparent jar,and means whereby the jar holder may be rotated upon the support.

2. A display device of the character described,

including a cylindrical support, the lower end or the support having anoutwardly extending flange, a cap insertible into the upper end of thesupport and having an outwardly extending fiange, said flanges acting tospace adjacent cans from the support, and a jar holder rotatably,mounted upon said cap.

3. A display device of the character described, including a cylindricalsupport, the base of said support having a lateral extension, a capengageable with the upper end of the support, and having alateral-extension, the lateral extensions of the support and cap havingthree concave side edges adapted to fit the curvature of three stacks ofadjacent cans placed injuxta-position to the,

support, means carried by the extension of the base for clamping thesupport in place on ashelf, and a jar holder rotatably mounted upon thecap.

4. A display device of the character described, including a cylindricalsupport, the base of said support having a lateral extension, a capengageable with the upper end of the support, and having a lateralextension, the lateral extensions of the support and cap having three912"" side edges adapted to fit the curvature'of three stacks ofadjacent cans placed in juxta position to the support, a tubular stemextending upward from the extension of the base and through theextension of the cap, a screw-threaded clamping element having'its lowerend disposed within said tubular extension, the upper end of the elementbeing pointed and a nut engaging the screw-threaded element and bearing.against the upper end. of the tubular stem.

5. A jar display device including a support, a jar holder mounted'on thesupport, the support having a lateral extension, a tubular stemextending upward from the extension, a shelf en gaging'screw disposedwithinsaidstemand havingits upper end pointed;"and'-'a nut-bearingagainst theupper end of the stem and engaging the screw. Y

6; Adisplay device of the character described,

including a hollow cylindrical support havingalateralextension, a caphaving'a downwardly extending flange fitting within the'upper end of thesupport and having a lateral extensiomthe lateral extensionsbeing'formed to engage with the rims of adjacent cans and spacesaid canssymmetrically, means for clamping-the support to-a shelf, and arotatable jar holder mounted upon and carried by saidcap. r

'7. A display device of the character described, including ahollowcylindrical support having a lateral extension, a cap having adownwardly extending flange fitting within the upper end of the supportand having a lateral extension, the lateral extensions being formed toengage with the rims of adjacent cans and space said cans symmetrically,means for clamping the support to a shelf, a rotatable jar holdermounted upon and carried by said cap, a shaft extending downward fromthe holder through the cap and carrying a beveled gear wheel, a shaftextending laterally through the flange of the cap and having a beveledgear engaging the first-named beveled gear wheel, the side wall of thesupport being vertical- 5 ly slotted downward to accommodate said shaft.

8. A displaydevice of the character described, including a hollowcylindrical support having a radial extension, a cap having a downwardlyextending flange contained within the upper end of the support andhaving a radial extension in' alinement with the lower radial extension,the radial extensions being formed to engage with adjacent cans andspace said cans uniformly on the shelf, means passing through saidextensions for clamping the support to the shelf, a rotatable jar holdermounted upon and carried by said cap,

and means for rotating said jar holder including a manually operablemember having its axis disposed radially and in line with the radialextensions but on the opposite side of the jar holder from said radialextensions.

9. A merchandising and display equipment comprising the combination of ashelf adapted to support a supply of sealed opaque containers of 1goods, a transparent jar adapted to contain specimens of the goodsstored in saidcontainers, a support for the transparent jar havingapproximately the same diameter as and the similitude of one of thesealed opaque containers, and a rotatable jar holder mounted upon theupper end of said support. 7

lOJA merchandising and display equipment comprising the combination of ashelf adapted to support a supply of scaled opaque containers 1 ofgoods, a transparent jar adapted to contain specimens of the goodsstored in said containers, a support for the transparent jar havingapproximately the same diameter as and the similitude of v one of thesealed opaque containers, a rotatable jar holder mounted upon the upperend of said tain a specimen of the goods contained in said sealed cans,a support for said jar adapted to rest upon": the a lower shelf. and.having approximately the same 'diameter: as andthe' similitude of thesealed cans, a rotatable jar engaging membermounted'upon said supportand supporting the jar for rotation, and means for clampi'ng'the supportbetweensaidshelves. i i V 12'; A merchandising and display equipmentcomprising the combination of a shelf adapted to support a supplyofsealed opaque containers of.

containers and a diameter approximately the same as that ofthe sealedcontainers and having the similitude of said containers, a rotatablemember mounted upon said support and supporting and engaging the jar,and manually operable means projecting through the side wall of thesupport whereby the jar may be rotated.

' 13. A merchandizing and display equipment comprisin in combination ashelf adapted to support two tiers or sealed opaque cylindricalcontainers, a transparent jar having a diameter approximately the sameas the diameter of one of the sealed containers and adaptedto containspecimens of the goods in said containers, a support for the transparentjar having approximately the same diameter and height as one of thesealed containers and adapted to be disposed in the lower tier with saidcontainers, and a rotatable jar holder mounted upon the upper end ofsaid support.

14. As an article of manufacture, a cap having a flange adapted to beinserted within the upper end of a dummy can, the cap being laterallyextended beyond said flange, a jar holder rotatably mounted upon theupper face of the cap, a base plate having means for supporting thebottom of the said dummy can and extending laterally beyond said means,a tubular stem extending upward from the base plate and extendingthrough the lateral extension of the cap, and

a screw having telescopic engagement with the stem and extending uptherefrom and adapted to engage against an upper shelf, and a. nutengaging the threads of the screw and bearing against the upper end ofthe stem.

15. A merchandising and display equipment comprising upper and lowershelves adapted to support sealed opaque cylindrical containers, a-

transparent jar having a diameter approximately the same as the diameterof one of the sealed containers and adapted to containspecimens of thegoods in one of the containers, a support for the transparent jar havingthe similitude of one of the sealed opaque containers and adapted to,

be disposed on the lower shelf with the said containers, a rotatable jarholder mounted upon the upper end of said support, and means engagingthe'support and engaging the upper and lowershelves to hold the supportwith the transparent jar thereon against movement from between theshelves.

16. A merchandising and display equipment including in combination twoshelves adapted to support between them sealed opaque cylindricalcontainers, a transparent jar adapted to contain specimens of the goodsin said containers, a support for the transparent jar and adapted torest upon a lower shelf, and having the similitude of the cylindricalcontainers, and means carried by said support detachably engaging theupper and lower shelves and holding the support from bodily movement.

17 A display device adapted to be used in connection with closed cansand for displaying a transparent sample jar of the goods in said cansport between them sealedopaque cylindrical con tainers, a supportadapted to rest upon the lower shelf, a rotatable jar holder mountedupon said support and having an upwardly extending pe:- ripheral guard,a transparent jar seated upon said support and within the peripheralguard and having a height such that the distance between the top of thejar and the under face of the upper shelf is less than the height ofsaid peripheral flange whereby the jar cannot be .removed from theholder without removing the support from the shelf, and means carried bythe support and removably holding the support from detachment from theshelf.

HALL. JONES, CHARLES RAY JONES.

